Based in Los Angeles during the ’70s, The Kids Are Alright is a hilarious, drama-filled sitcom. It portrays the life of a big, Catholic-Irish family – 8 children to be exact. Did I mention they’re all boys? Throughout the series, the boys get into all kinds of mischief. Nonetheless, their mother is always one step ahead of them. While the father works all day, their mother stays home to care of the house and kids (mostly the house).
Their oldest son, who was away in college studying to be a seminarian, returns home with some bad news. He no longer wants to be a priest and will be dropping out of college. After a little soul searching and a talk with his surprisingly understanding father, he breaks the news to the entire community during a game of Bingo.
Meanwhile, the middle, often overlooked son sees an audition call for a children’s play which catches his eye. He sneaks around the house and manages to get a hold of the landline. With the most privacy he could find in a nearby closet, he makes a phone call to book an appointment with the theatre. After raising the audition fee, he goes to the theatre accompanied by a younger brother. His mother gets wind of his shenanigans through the family’s snitch. She makes her way to the theatre only to witness his brilliant performance. This makes her resolve not to confront him about it. The pair gradually bonds over their similarities throughout the series.
Their Catholic religion plays a huge role in the family’s enormous size as you’ll see later on in the series. In one episode, Peggy visits the doctor who tells her she has a cyst. One of the boys, who was on a spying mission, mishears the word and thinks they’re having a sister. When confronted by her children, she clarifies the matter. However, this sparks a conversation between the parents as to whether The Church “allows some kind contraceptive after having 8 children”.
The Kids Are Alright is full of well thought-out characters which set it apart from other sitcoms. It takes a different direction in depicting the family unit. By the looks of the actor playing Mike, it would have been easier to depict a harsh, hard-drinking Irish father. However, The Kids Are creates a warmer, caring and gentler father figure. He’s seen actively participating in his children’s lives. Additionally, he goes an extra mile to make his wife happy which, honestly, took me by surprise.
It draws the audience in with its chaotic yet authentic storyline. Every episode feels differently refreshing as a new “problem” comes up every time. Since the series borrows from the producer’s, Tim Doyle, very own childhood, there’s very little exaggeration. The storyline and characters feel real including everything from secret girlfriends to the tattletale of the family.
It’s a binge-worthy show for any comedy lover. Additionally, The Kids Are Alright is family-friendly which means you can enjoy the show with people from all age groups. It’s very relatable whether you grew up in a big family or not. You’ll be glued to your screen for a while so grab your popcorn and get comfortable.
Watch the trailer here.
